System and method for locational messaging

ABSTRACT

Herein is disclosed a positional content platform and related systems and methods. According to some embodiments, the platform includes a mobile processing and communication device and a service layer executing on a server. The mobile processing and communication device communicates with the service layer. By virtue of the communication, a user of the mobile device is able to locate and view digital content that has been created and stored on the platform. The aforementioned content is associated with a geographic location, and, according to some embodiments, the content is represented in a user interface by an icon that is superimposed over a field of view representative of a geographic region.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 13/435,741, filed Mar. 30, 2012, which application claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 61/470,961, “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR LOCATIONAL MESSAGING,” filed Apr. 1, 2011, which applications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present document relates generally to a system and method for delivery of digital content based upon the location of a particular recipient, and more particularly to a system and method for delivering a message to a mobile device, such as a cellular telephone, based upon the location of the mobile device.

BACKGROUND

Traditionally, the delivery of digital content (message forum postings, email, text messages, SMS, video files, graphics files, audio files, etc.) is organized around a universal resource locator (URL), telephone number or email address. In other words, when considering the question of to where content is delivered, the answer is that content is delivered to a particular URL (example: content is uploaded to a particular image file server, such as the image file server at flickr.com, or to a particular video server, such as the one available at youtube.com, or to a particular forum server, such as the one available at 4chan.org), to a particular telephone number (example: a text message or SMS is delivered to a particular telephone number), or to a particular email address (content associated with emails are delivered to a particular email address). One result of this present state of affairs is that content which is intended for receipt by a community is generally accessed by the community via a website. Thus, the community is nucleated about a website. Discussion pertaining to a restaurant, for example, is nucleated about a website such as chowhound.com, as opposed to being nucleated around the particular restaurant that is the subject of the discussion. One disadvantage of this organization is that although a given individual may be a customer of the aforementioned restaurant, that individual will not encounter the content pertaining to the restaurant if he does not visit the particular website that hosts the content.

There exists a need for a service that organizes the delivery of electronic content around physical location as at least one aspect of its content delivery scheme.

SUMMARY

Against this backdrop, the present invention was developed. According to one embodiment, a computerized method for execution by a mobile communication and processing device includes displaying a user interface that presents a field of view representative of a region on earth. The method further includes sending a first service call to a service layer. The service call includes field of view data. In response to the first service call, attribute data descriptive of digital content that is associated with a locale within said region is received. Additionally, an icon is positioned within said field of view of said user interface as a function of said locale.

According to another embodiment, a mobile communication and processing device includes a processor and a memory unit in communication with the processor. The memory unit stores a set of instructions that, when executed by the processor cause the processor and memory unit to cooperate to display a user interface that presents a field of view representative of a region on earth. The processor also sends a first service call to a service layer, wherein said service call includes field of view data. The processor also receives, in response to the first service call, attribute data descriptive of digital content that is associated with a locale within the region. The processor also positions an icon within the field of view of the user interface as a function of the locale.

According to another embodiment, a system includes a first mobile communication and processing device under operation by a first user. The system also includes a second mobile communication and processing device under operation by a second user. The first and second mobile communication and processing devices are in communication, via a communication network, with a service layer executing on a server. The first mobile communication and processing device includes a processor and a memory unit in data communication with the processor. The memory unit stores a set of instructions, which, when executed by the processor, cause said processor to cooperate with said memory unit to display a user interface that presents a field of view representative of a region on earth. The processor also designates a region of the field of view selected by the first user as being identified by a name selected by the first user. The processor also sends a service request to the service layer, causing the service layer to notify the first mobile communication and processing device of occurrence of an event determined the first user within the region.

According to another embodiment, a computerized method for execution by a mobile communication and processing device includes displaying a user interface that presents a field of view representative of a region on earth. The method also includes creating digital content defined by a user of the mobile communication and processing device. A service call is sent to a service layer. The service call includes position data. The position data identifies a position within the field of view. The service call further includes the digital content. The service call causes the service layer to store the digital content in a persistence layer in association with the position data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a locational messaging system, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 2 depicts a logical architecture of the positional content platform, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a mobile device, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 depicts a user interface presented by the positional content application, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 5 depicts a method for placing content icons and aggregator icons on a field of view, in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 6 depicts a content summary in accordance with some embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 7 depicts a content detail in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 8 depicts a create comment screen in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9 depicts an aggregator summary in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention

FIG. 10 depicts an aggregator detail in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 11 depicts a create content screen in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12 depicts a camera/video interface in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 13 depicts a create content screen with an image introduced into the content editing area, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 14 depicts a method for creating content, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 15 depicts a filter menu in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 16 depicts a view menu in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 17 depicts a search menu in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 18 depicts a mark place interface in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 19 depicts a positional selection menu in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 20 depicts a 5-D view in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 21 depicts a notifications center in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 22 depicts a newsfeed screen in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 depicts one embodiment of a locational messaging system. As can be seen from FIG. 1, the system 100 includes a plurality of mobile communication and processing devices 102 and 104. Although FIG. 1 depicts a system including two mobile communication and processing devices 102 and 104, the locational messaging system 100 may include any number of such devices 102 and 104, including very large numbers of such devices 102 and 104, such as millions of such devices 102 and 104, or more. According to one embodiment, the mobile communication and processing devices 102 and 104 are embodied as smart phones, such as an iPhone® or a phone running the Android® operating system. According to another embodiment, the mobile devices 102 and 104 are embodied as personal display assistant devices, tablet devices, mobile gaming devices, or any other mobile device understood by those of skill in the art to provide a mobile execution environment with certain positional detection capabilities and communication capabilities, which are discussed in greater detail herein.

According to one embodiment, each mobile device 102 and 104 may communicate with a positional content platform 106 via a communication network 108, such as the Internet.

An application executing on the mobile device 102 or 106 permits its user to generate digital content and to associate that digital content with a location, so that the content can be encountered by another user of such a mobile device 102 or 104. For example, a user of mobile device 102 creates a simple unit of digital content, a textual message, reading “I was here,” and associates the message with a location. The user of mobile device 102 may elect to associate the aforementioned message with his present location L1. According to one embodiment, the mobile device 102 detects its current location and associates the content generated by the user with the current location. On the other hand, the user may elect to associate his message with a location that is different from his current location, such as at location L2. In either event, in the wake of generating the content, the content and desired location for association with the content is communicated to the positional content platform 106.

Continuing with this example, the user of mobile device 104 uses the mobile device 104 to discover and view the content. According to one embodiment, the mobile device 104 presents a user interface having a field of view that corresponds with a region R1. According to one embodiment, the mobile device 104 detects its current location, and based upon its current location defines its field of view to be generally centered about or to otherwise contain its location. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the mobile device 104 is located at location L3 and therefore presents a field of view corresponding to region R1, which encompasses location L3. An icon corresponding to the content associated with location L2 is presented within the field of view, at a location within the field of view corresponding to location L2. Therefore, when located at location L3, the user of the mobile device 104 observes, via the field of view presented by the user interface, an icon alerting him to the presence of content associated with location L2. The user may select the icon, and view the message: “I was here.” According to some embodiments, the field of view may encompass an area that does not contain the present location of the mobile device 104, and the field of view may be selectable by the user of the mobile device 104.

According to some embodiments, the mobile device 104 sends a service call to the positional content platform 106 to obtain information concerning the location of content, so that icons may be properly presented within the aforementioned field of view. According to some embodiments, the mobile device directs a service to the positional content platform 106; the service call includes parameters defining the region corresponding to the field of view. The positional content platform 106 responds by returning a data set that identifies each unit of content within the aforementioned region and the location associated with each such unit. This request and response transaction provides the mobile device 104 with sufficient information to generate the field of view and to place icons appropriately within the field of view, so that the location of the icons within the field of view correspond to the physical location of the messages within the physical region corresponding to the field of view.

In response to having encountered and viewed the content associated with location L2, the user of mobile device 104 may generate a response, such as, “So was I.” According to some embodiments, the response is associated with the original message, so that the original message and content form a thread or discussion thread that is associated with location L2. The thread—also a form of content—is discoverable and viewable in the manner described above. Digital content to be associated with a location may take on any form, including, without limitation, the form of a textual message, a graphical image, such as a graphics file generated by the mobile device 104 via an integrated camera, a video file, such as a video file generated by the mobile device 104 via an integrated camera, such as an audio file generated by the mobile device 104 via an integrated microphone, digital content for game, digital content representing a discount or savings to be redeemed at a merchant, digital content representing a monetary value, a computer file, such as an executable program or data file, or any other form of digital content.

According to some embodiments some content may be of more interest than other content. For example, the user of mobile device 104 may have more interest in content generated by certain users, such those he knows, than by other users, such as those he does not know. The user may also have more interest in content that has been recently generated or changed than he does in content that has been generated in the more distant past. Similarly, the user may have more interest in content that he has not viewed than in content he has already viewed. According to some embodiments, to assist the user in discovering content suited to his preferences, the mobile device permits the user to establish or select filters that influence whether a given unit of content will be represented as an icon within the field of view presented to the user. According to some embodiments, the mobile device directs a service call to the positional content platform 106; the service call includes parameters defining the region corresponding to the field of view, and further includes filter data (examples: date of creation of content later than a specified date, creator of content must be found within a list established by the user, content not previously viewed, etc.). The positional content platform 106 responds by returning a data set that identifies each unit of content that both satisfies the filter requirements and is located within the aforementioned region. The location associated with each such unit of content is also returned. This request and response transaction provides the mobile device 104 with sufficient information to generate the field of view and to place icons appropriately within the field of view, so that the icons actually presented in the field of view correspond to content satisfying the filter requirements.

According to some embodiments, the system 100 includes a registration process. The registration process requires a user to establish a user name and a password, so that the user can later log into his account. The system also affords the user the opportunity to create an association between his own account and other users of the system 100. For example, the system 100 permits the user to assign a “friend” or “follower” or other relationship between his account and another user's account. According to some embodiments, these relationships may be imported from other platforms (example: “friends” may be imported from Facebook®, and “followers” from Twitter®, etc.). According to some embodiments, these relationships may be used as filter criteria, so that only certain content ultimately ends up being represented as an icon on a user's field of view.

According to some embodiments, the system 100 presents an interface by which the user may define a region as a “place,” and may assign a name to the place. For example, the mobile device 104 may present its user with an interface allowing the user to define a place as the region determined by the latitude and longitude of a given location L4, and a radius R1 extending from the location L4. According to some embodiments, the radius R1 may extend in two dimensions, while according to other embodiments, the radius R1 may extend in three dimensions. According to some embodiments, the mobile device 104 presents its user with an interface by which its user may define a pair of latitudinal coordinates LAT1 and LAT2 and a pair of longitudinal coordinates LONG1 and LONG2, thereby defining a place as the interior region defined by the pairs of latitudinal coordinates LAT1 and LAT2 and longitudinal coordinates LONG1 and LONG2. According to some embodiments, the mobile device 104 presents its user with an interface by which its user may further specify altitude data, thereby defining a “place” as referring to a region defined as described above, at a particular altitude.

The system 100 allows a place or set of places to be associated with a use, so that the user can interact with a selected place in different manners. For example, one or more places can serve as filter criteria: represent as icons only those units of digital content associated within the region corresponding to a place prescribed by the user. Other uses of places, some of which are described herein, are also possible.

According to some embodiments, the system 100 provides notifications of the occurrence of certain events to the user. By way of example, and without limitation, a notification may take the form of a tone or audio indication from the mobile device 102 or 104, a vibration from the mobile device 102 or 104, delivery of a notification to a “notification center” of the mobile platform 102 or 104, presentation of a message on the device's Lock Screen, presentation of a banner (optionally with a message or number therein) superimposed over a button or icon, or presentation of a badge superimposed upon a button or icon. According to some embodiments, and by way of example, and without limitation, a mobile device 102 or 104 may provide its user with a notification in the event that: content was newly associated with a location in a defined “place”; that content was newly associated with a location within the field of view of the user interface; that another user designated as a “friend” or “followed by” (or bearing some other relationship to the user's account) has entered a location within a defined “place”; that another user designated as a “friend” or “followed by” (or bearing some other relationship to the user's account) has entered the field of view of the user interface; that content has been created by another user designated as a “friend” or “followed by” (or bearing some other relationship to the user's account); that another user has responded to a unit of content that the user has created, such as by “replying” in a thread. These notification are delivered asynchronously, being provided to the mobile device from the positional content platform 106 (in some instances via an intermediary service offering “push” notification services), with the timing of the presentation of any particular notification being a function of when the triggering event occurred, and with the manner of presentation of the notification being a function of the configuration of the mobile device 102 or 104 and the state of execution of the application (example: the application is in the foreground, the application is in the background, the application is inactive, the device is asleep, etc.).

According to some embodiments, the system provides “newsfeeds” to the user of the mobile device 102 or 104. In some embodiments, a newsfeed is a chronological queue of activity within the system 100 bearing characteristics that the action may be of interest to the user. The user interface provides a screen that allows the user of the mobile device 102 or 104 to view the newsfeed. According to some embodiments, events included in the newsfeed include those events that would trigger a notification. The occurrences of other events also are included in the news feed, such as the number of responses in a thread surpassing a threshold, a “friend” registering as a user of the system 100, another user followed by the user or who follows the user registering as a user of the system 100, etc.

According to some embodiments, the system 100 may access a public application interface exposed by a social network or other external platform, in order to create a message (such as a “wall” posting, tweet, etc.) informing users of those platforms that a unit of content was generated within the system 100. Optionally, the aforementioned message may include a hyperlink, permitting its viewer to select the link to view a webpage. The webpage referenced by the hyperlink may allow the visitor to register for the service, or in the event that the visitor is already registered, to log into his account, to view the content, or to interact with the content (example: to respond to the content, as may be the case in the context of a thread).

According to some embodiments, the platform 106 is programmed with a set of rules for conducting a game, the play of which is conducted at least partially through the encountering at a geographic location or region, viewing from or at a geographic location or region, placing at a geographic location or region or configuration of digital content to be placed at a geographic location or region. The platform 106 further includes rules and interfaces to permit encountering the game content, user reaction to such encounters, and manipulation of state variables defining a game's state in reaction to such encounters. The platform 106 further includes rules and interfaces to permit viewing of the game content, user reaction to such viewing, and manipulation of state variables defining a game's state in reaction to such viewing. The platform 106 further includes rules and interfaces to permit placing the game content in association with a geographic location, user reaction to such placements, and manipulation of state variables defining a game's state in reaction to such placements. The platform 106 further includes rules and interfaces to permit configuring the game content, user reaction to such configuration, and manipulation of state variables defining a game's state in reaction to such configuration.

FIG. 2 depicts a logical architecture of the positional content platform 106, according to some embodiments. As can be seen from FIG. 2, the positional content platform includes a service layer 200, a core database application interface (API) 202, a logical data layer 204, a physical data layer 206, and a web portal 208. Also depicted in FIG. 2 is an application 210 executing on the mobile platform 102 and 104, which is referred to herein as the positional content application 210.

The positional content application 210 communicates with an API exposed via the web services layer 200. The service layer 200 exposes API's to the positional content application 210, permitting the positional content application to cooperate with the positional content application to perform the operations and provide the features disclosed herein. For example, the web services layer may expose API's allowing creation of content and association of the content with a location, allowing retrieval of content, allowing retrieval of attribute content within a field of view, allowing logging in or out of an account, etc.

Data constituting the positional digital content is stored in the physical data layer 206, as is user account data and other data needed for performance of the operations and features disclosed herein. The service layer 200 interacts with the data stored in the physical data layer 206 through the core API's 202 exposed by the database server, and through stored procedures, schemas, and other tools pertaining to the logical organization of the database 204.

According to some embodiments, the database 202, 204 and 206 is a relational database, while in other embodiments, it is embodied as an object oriented database, or as a graph database. Optionally, the physical storage layer 206 may be distributed, and may optionally be arranged so that data from users in a particular geographic region is dedicated to a particular storage array, or may be optionally arranged so that content associated with a given geographic region is stored in one array, while content associated with another geographic region is stored in a different array.

By way of illustration, the positional content application 210 can make a service call to the service layer 200 to obtain information needed to position icons representative of data within the field of view prevailing in its user interface, as has been discussed with reference to FIG. 1. The service call contains data from which the geographical range corresponding to the field of view can be determined, and may optionally contain filter data. The service layer 200 responds by interpreting the service call, and breaking it into a series of core API calls to the core database API layer 202, causing the API layer 202 to interact with the physical data storage layer to retrieve the requested data. The requested data is then passed to the service layer, which packages the data in a way appropriate for transport to and ingestion by the positional content application 210. Finally, the positional content application 210 responds by unpacking the returned data and positioning icons on the field of view, pursuant to the data returned by the service layer 200.

According to some embodiments, the service layer 200 also interacts with third party platforms in order to perform the operations and provide the features disclosed herein. For example, the service layer 200 optionally interacts with social platforms 212 to ingest user account data, such as friend lists, follower lists, and to post messages on those platforms. Similarly, the positional content application also optionally interacts with third party platforms, for reasons ranging from obtaining map or satellite imagery (discussed in more detail herein), for interaction with an authorization engine, such as an o-auth engine, and for other reasons required for the performance of operations and provision of features disclosed herein.

According to some embodiments, the service layer 200 interacts with a notification service 212. The notification service 212 is an external platform exposes an API that provides clients the ability to asynchronously communicate data messages to the mobile devices 202 and 204. The notification service 212 interacts with the operating system on the mobile device 202 and 204, in lieu of the service layer 200 directly performing such an interaction, in order to control the flow of notification calls directed to any given mobile device 202 or 204. The service layer 200 call the notification service 212 in order to provide the notification functionality discussed above and in greater detail below.

It will be understood by one skilled in the art that the execution environment for the positional content platform may be embodied as a single platform. Optionally, each of the elements of the positional content platform may be executed on separate servers, and any number of the elements may be executed on a single server or distributed across any number of servers. Optionally, the servers may operate as a cluster to permit greater availability and faster response times, as is well understood in the art.

FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a mobile device 102 or 104, according to some embodiments. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the mobile device 102 include an applications processor 300 and a baseband processor 302. Application processor 300 communicates information to baseband processor 302, so that the baseband processor 302 can prepare the data, which may constitute voice data, or may constitute wireless mobile internet data, for encoding, modulation and transmission via the transceiver 304 and power amplifiers 306. During operation, the processors 300 and 302 have use of a multilevel cell memory 308, a static RAM 310 and a synchronous dynamic RAM 312 for the storage and retrieval of executable code and data.

The mobile device 102 is provided with power through the cooperative efforts of an optionally rechargeable battery 314, and two power management modules 316 and 318, which serve to monitor the voltage of the battery 314, regulate voltage levels, activate and deactivate subcircuits and input/output devices and other elements to conserve power, and perform other power management functions that are well known in the art.

The mobile device 102 also includes microphone 320, speaker 322, and earpiece 324, which are coupled to the application processor 300 via an encoder/decoder module 326. The microphone 320, speaker 322 and earpiece 324 are input/output devices used to perform various operations and provide various aspects of features (such as enable various aspects of content creation and content delivery) of the system 100 disclosed herein.

The application processor 300 is also coupled to a touch screen controller 328, which controls the operation of a touch screen 330, which is the primary means of visual input/output capability of the mobile device 102.

The mobile device 102 also optionally includes a camera 332 coupled to the application processor, for capture of video imagery, which the processor stores as graphics files or video files, in formats well understood by those of skill in the art.

Also coupled to the application processor 300 is a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth transceiver 334, which optionally functions in accord with I.E.E.E. 802.11a/b/g standards, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR and FM. The Wi-Fi and Bluetooth transceiver 334 cooperates with the application processor 300 to provide Wi-Fi connection to a communication network, such as the Internet.

The mobile device 102 includes a global positioning system (GPS) transceiver 336 which provides positional data to the application processor, so that the operating system of the device 102 can provide location services, such as providing latitudinal, longitudinal and accuracy data to application executing on the mobile platform 102.

The mobile device 102 also optionally includes a magnetic sensor 338, which senses the magnetic polarity of the earth, and provides directional information to the processor 300. Also, the mobile device 102 optionally includes an accelerometer 340 for detecting forces acting upon the accelerometer 340, such as forces originating from acceleration of the mobile device 102 or from gravity or the like. The accelerometer provides its data to the processor 300. The mobile device 102 also optionally includes a gyroscope 342 that detects rotation of the mobile device 102 about its three axes, and provides the rotational information to the processor 300. The mobile device 102 may also include a serial port 344 that is coupled to the processor 300 via a serial port controller 346, for the communication of serial data to and from the processor 300, for the delivery of direct current power to the device 102 and for other functions known to those of skill in the art.

FIG. 4 depicts a user interface 400 presented by the positional content application 210, according to some embodiments. In the depiction of FIG. 4, user interface 400 presents a screen that may be used for locating content stored on the positional content platform 106. Given the particular active screen in FIG. 4, the user interface 400 includes a field of view 402. The field of view 402 corresponds to a region of geography on earth. In the particular embodiment depicted in FIG. 4, a map is depicted within the field of view to help 402 the user determine the particular region to which the field of view 402 corresponds, although this need not be the case.

As can be seen from FIG. 4, content icons 404 are superimposed over the field of view 402. Each content icon 404 represents a unit of digital content stored in the positional content platform 106. The position of any given content icon 404 within the field of view 402 corresponds to the geographic position associated with content represented by the icon. In other words, if a user of the positional content platform 106 elects to create content and associate it with the intersection of 50^(th) Street and France Avenue (or the longitude and latitude corresponding with intersection of 50^(th) Street and France Avenue), then the content icon 404 representing that content is positioned at the point within the field of view corresponding to the intersection of 50^(th) Street and France Avenue. If a map is displayed in the background, the content icon 404 appears at the intersection 50^(th) Street and France Avenue on the map.

Optionally, the color of a content icon 404 may be determined by certain characteristics of the content represented by the icon. For example, a content icon 404 may appear in a first color, such as red, in the event that the content represented by the icon 404 makes reference to (or “tags”) the user account into which the positional content application 210 is currently logged in. A content icon 404 may appear in a second color, such as green, in the event that any unit of content represented by the icon 404 was created by a user account associated with the currently logged-in account (example: the underlying content contains content created by a user account designated as a “friend,” “follower” or a user that the presently logged-in user account has designated to as a user account to “follow.”). A content icon 404 may appear in a third color, such as black, in the event that the content represented by the icon 404 has neither of the previously recited characteristics, and is therefore simply public content.

In the event that more than one unit of content is associated with the same geographic position or very similar geographic positions, the field of view 402 could become cluttered with content icons 404 that interfere with one another. To prevent such cluttering, icons that would otherwise interfere with one another are represented by a single aggregator icon 406. Several aggregator icons 406 are depicted in the field of view 402. Optionally, an aggregator icon 406 may bear a number on its face, with the number representing the number of underlying units of content the aggregator icon 406 represents. According to some embodiments, the color of an aggregator icon 406 may be determined by the characteristics of the various units of content is represents in a manner similar to that described with reference to a content icon 404. For example, an aggregator icon 406 may appear in a first color, such as red, in the event that any of the units of content represented by the icon 406 makes reference to (or “tags”) the user account into which the positional content application 210 is currently logged in. An aggregator icon 406 may appear in a second color, such as green, in the event that any unit of content represented by the icon 406 was created by a user account associated with the currently logged-in account (example: any unit of the underlying content contains content created by a user account designated as a “friend,” “follower” or a user that the presently logged-in user account has designated to as a user account to “follow.”). An aggregator icon 406 may appear in a third color, such as black, in the event that the content represented by the icon 406 has neither of the previously recited characteristics, and is therefore simply public content.

FIG. 5 depicts a method for placing the content icon 404 and aggregator icons 406 on the field of view 402. According to one embodiment, the method of FIG. 5 is executed by the mobile device 102 or 104. In operation 500, a field of view 402 is displayed in the user interface 400. As has previously been discussed, the field of view 402 corresponds to a geographic region of earth. In operation 502, a service call is sent to the service layer 200. The service call may include field of view data, so that the service layer 200 can determine the currently active field of view in the user interface 400. In response to having sent the service call, the positional content application 210 receives a response thereto. The aforementioned response includes data that is descriptive of the individual units of content within the field of view 402, including locational data for each such unit, and, optionally, other summary data for each such unit, including data required for icon 404 and 406 color determination and information required for content summary display, as shown in FIG. 6.

Operations 508-518 can be performed as a single operation in the event of a single unit of content being within the field of view 402, and in the further event that the position and orientation of the mobile device 102 or 104 is known, which may be the case, for example, if the position and orientation was determined by user selection, as opposed to corresponding to the actual physical location and orientation of the device 102 or 104, or, for example, if the position and orientation were previously determined. Given the aforementioned scenario, operation 506 is performed by positioning an icon within the field of view 402 of the user interface 400 as a function of the position associated with the content represented by the icon.

On the other hand, assuming that the conditions recited above are not satisfied, operation 506 may be broken into operations 508-518. In operation 508, the position and orientation of the mobile device 102 or 104 is determined, for example, through use of an on-board gyroscope and GPS unit integral with the mobile device 102 or 104. In operation 508, for example, through calls to location and rotation services in the unit's 102 or 104 operating system, information concerning the unit's 102 or 104 latitude, longitude, altitude, longitudinal accuracy, latitudinal accuracy, vertical accuracy, and rotation around each of the x, y, and z axes may be determined.

In operation 510, the on-screen position of each icon is determined, as a function of the dimensions of field of view 402, the location of each underlying unit of content, and optionally the position and orientation of the mobile device 102 or 104 or chosen position for anchoring of the field of view 402. In query operation 512, is determined whether any of the icons 402 or 404 would overlap one another. If not, operation 514 is performed, and each icon 402 is superimposed on the field of view 402 in the position determined in operation 510. On the other hand, if one or more icons 404 or 406 would, in fact, overlap, then, in operation 516, the overlapping icons are “grouped” and represented as an aggregator icon 406 until there exist no overlapping icons 404 or 406. Finally, in operation 518, each icon 402 or 404 is superimposed on the field of view 402 in the position determined in operation 516.

One of skill in the art will understand that the order of operations shown herein need not be preserved, and that operations may be performed in different orders or concurrently. For example, operation 500 and operations 502 may be performed in any order or at the same time. One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that other such operations may also be performed in sequences other than those shown in FIG. 5 (or in any other Figure depicting a method flow).

The user interface 400 also includes a series of selectable buttons 408-416, the functions of each are the topic of further discussion herein, below.

The user interface 400 further includes a main menu button 418, the selection of which directs the user to a main menu allowing the user to perform various utilitarian operations not of interest in this document, but which will readily present themselves to the mind of one of ordinary skill in the art (manage user account information, etc.). The user interface also includes a selectable notification button 420, the function of which is the topic of further discussion herein, below.

The user interface 400 also includes a location button 422 the function of which is the topic of further discussion herein, below.

The field of view 402 also a position indicator 424. The position indicator 424 may be positioned as a function of GPS data, i.e., positioned within the field of view 402 to correspond with the actual detected location of the mobile device 102 or 104. As discussed below, certain features of the positional content platform associate content or otherwise function based on the position of the position indicator. According to some embodiments, the position indicator 424 always remains centered in the field of view 402. The user may “swipe” his finger across the touch-screen of the mobile device 102 or 104 to scroll the field of view 402 in the direction of his finger swipe. In that event, the position indicator 424 remains centered within the field of view 402, so that the position indicator 402 effectively changes its position, thereby affecting certain functions and features of the platform 106.

According to some embodiments, the content icons 404 are selectable. Upon selection of a content icon, a content summary 600 is displayed, as depicted in FIG. 6. Typically, the unit of content will be a thread, in that it will be constituted of a plurality of sub-units of content, each of which is, in one form or another, a reply to the original sub-unit of content. Together, each of the sub-units of content constitutes a thread, or a single unit of content. The content summary 600 may include the following data, each of which is optional: the user name of the creator of the original sub-unit of content; the user name of the creator of the most recently created sub-unit of content in the thread (or unit); an indication, in absolute or relative terms, of when the original sub-unit of content was created; an indication, in absolute or relative terms, of when the most recently created sub-unit was created; a picture or graphical image associated with the account of the creator of the original sub-unit of content; a picture or graphical image associated with the account of the creator of the most recently created sub-unit of content; an indication of the number of sub-units of content in the thread; an indication of the number of creators of sub-units within the thread that have been designated as being associated (as a friend/follower, etc.) with the user account currently logged in; an indication of the number of sub-units in the thread in which the logged-in user account had been referenced (or “tagged”). The preceding list is presented by way of example and not by way of limitation. Other types of summary data will readily present themselves to one of ordinary skill in the art.

The content summary 600 includes a selectable close button 602, which, when selected, causes the content summary 600 to vanish from the user interface 400. On the other hand, in response to selection of the content summary 600, the positional content application 210 causes the user interface 400 to present a content detail 700, an embodiment of which is depicted in FIG. 7.

As can be seen in FIG. 7, the content detail 700 presents a thread or unit of content, which is, in turn, constituted of sub-units 702, 704, 706 and 708. Each sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 has a creator that is a user registered on the positional content platform 106. Each sub-unit is introduced into the thread depicted in FIG. 7 as either a response to the original sub-unit of content 702, or as a response to another sub-unit 704-708 in the thread. Optionally, the content detail 700 may present each sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 in a sequential, indented format, with each sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 being presented beneath, and indented to the right of, the particular sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 to which it is a response. Each sub-unit of content 702, 704, 706 and 708 may include, by way of example only, and not by way of limitation, textual information, graphical imagery, video imagery, audio content, and other forms of digital content, which will readily present themselves to the minds of those of ordinary skill in the art.

The content detail 700 also includes a selectable “back” button 710, when, when selected causes the positional content application 210 to present the content summary 600, such as the one presented in FIG. 6. The content detail 700 also includes a selectable close button 712, which, when selected, causes the content detail 700 to vanish from the user interface 400.

Each sub-unit of content 702, 704, 706 and 708 is presented with a selectable “reply” button 714 presented in a footer below the sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708. Selection of the reply button 714 in the footer of a particular sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 of content permits the user to create a sub-unit of content for inclusion in the thread as a response to the particular sub-unit 702, 704, 706 and 708 of content. To enable the user to create such response content, the positional content application 210 presents a create comment screen 800 in the user interface.

According to some embodiments, a content detail 700 or content summary 600 or other unit of content associated with a location may be presented to the user via the user interface, in response to the user entering a region, without requiring the user to make any selection via the user interface or otherwise perform any other action. For example, a message or a coupon or other unit of content representing a discount or rebate to be redeemed or applied to a purchase may be associated with a geographic region. In the event that a user enters the region, the content is presented to the user. For example, a message instructing a user to travel to another particular region may be presented to the user in response to the user being detected within a region associated with the message. After delivery of the message, if the user is detected in the aforementioned other particular region, a unit of content representing a discount or coupon may be presented to the user via the mobile device 102.

According to some embodiments, a unit of content may be completely viewable by a particular user only if that user pays a fee, such as a subscription fee or a pay-per-view fee. For example, a particular content summary 600 may represent such a unit of content. In response to selection of the content summary 600, the user is presented with a message explaining that the content, itself, or the content detail 700, is viewable or encounterable, only if the user first pays a pay-per-view fee or subscription fee. Optionally, the message contains a link to a set of checkout pages that permit the user to tender payments. In response to successful processing of the user's payment, the user may select the content summary, and encounter or view the underlying content detail 700 or content.

FIG. 8 depicts a create comment screen 800 in accordance with some embodiments. The create comment screen 800 includes a keyboard 802 and a content editing area 804. By virtue of typing on the keyboard 802, corresponding text appears in the content editing area 804. Other forms of content may also be introduced into the content editing area 804. For example, the create comment screen 800 also includes a camera button 806, which, when selected causes the positional content application 210 to present a camera/video interface, by which still and moving video files may be created via a camera on-board the mobile device 102 or 104 and introduced into the content editing area 804. Alternatively, the user may introduce previously captured still and moving video files by selection of the gallery button 808, which presents a gallery of previously captured pictures and videos for selection and inclusion in the content editing area 804.

The create comment screen 800 also includes a tag button 810, which presents a list of selectable user accounts associated with the particular user account that is logged in. Upon selection of one or more of the presented user accounts, the sub-unit of content ultimately created via the create comment screen 800 is “tagged” to the selected user account(s), thereby optionally generating an alert to the “tagged” user account, generating a news feed entry to the tagged user account, altering the color of the corresponding content icon 404 or aggregator icon 406 when viewed via the tagged user account, etc.

The create comment screen 800 contains a post button 812. Upon selection of the post content button 812, the contents of the content editing area 804 is included as a response sub-unit of content to the particular sub-unit of content to which the user selected “reply.” Optionally, GPS data regarding the location of the mobile device at the time of selection of the post content button 812 is also obtained and saved by the positional content platform 106, although, according to one embodiment, the position associated with the thread, itself, is not influenced by the positional information of any of the response sub-units of content, i.e., the thread remains positioned at the original position of the original sub-unit of content.

Finally, the create content screen contains a back button 814. Upon selection of the back button 814, the user interface returns to presenting the content detail screen, such as the embodiment depicted in FIG. 7.

In the passages herein discussing FIG. 4, aggregator icons 406 were disclosed. To review, an aggregator icon 406 is an icon that represents a plurality of individual units of content associated with locations in exceptional proximity to one another, such that the placement of individual content icons 404 in a field of view 402 would not be feasible, due to interference/overlap between the content icons 404. According to some embodiments, aggregator icons 406 are selectable. In response to selection of an aggregator icon 406 by a user, an aggregator summary 900 is presented in the user interface 400 by the positional content application 210.

The aggregator summary 900 is a modified version of the content summary 600. To create the aggregator summary 900, the positional content application 210 analyzes each of the units of content represented by the aggregator icon 406, and determines which individual unit of content is most connected to the user account that is presently logged into the application 210. According to one embodiment, for each sub-unit represented by a particular aggregator icon 406, the positional content application 210 sums together the number of times its sub-units of content tags the user account that is presently logged into the application 210 and the number of its sub-units created by friends/followers/followees of the user account that is presently logged into the application 210; the unit of content with the greatest possible sum is designated as unit of content that is most connected to the user account that is presently logged into the application 210. The aggregator summary 900 is a content summary 600 of the aforementioned designated unit of content.

The aggregator summary 900 includes a selectable close button 902, which, when selected, causes the aggregator summary 900 to vanish from the user interface 400. On the other hand, in response to selection of the aggregator summary 900, the positional content application 210 causes the user interface 400 to present an aggregator detail 1000, an embodiment of which is depicted in FIG. 10.

As can be seen from FIG. 10, the aggregator detail 1000 includes a summary area 1002 and a quick-filter area 1004. The summary area 1002 contains individual content summary data 600 of each unit of content represented by the aggregator icon 406. The summary area 1002 is scrollable. According to one embodiment, a user may swipe his or her finger vertically along the touch screen area containing the summary area 1002, causing the summary area to scroll, and the particular content summaries 600 contained therein to change, in order to accommodate circumstances in which there are more content summaries 600 than can fit within the summary area 1002. Selection of a particular content summary 600 causes the corresponding content detail 700, such as the embodiment depicted in FIG. 7, to be presented.

The quick-filter area 1004 contains three buttons: a public quick-filter button 1006, a friends-only quick-filter button 1008 and a tagged quick-filter button 1010. Selection of the public quick-filter button 1006 has two effects. First, it causes the summary area 1002 to be populated by all content summaries 600 of units of content represented by the aggregator icon 406, regardless of the creators of that unit's individual sub-units of content. Second, selection of the public quick-filter button 1006 unselects the friends-only quick-filter button 1008.

Selection of the friends-only quick-filter button 1008 has two effects. First, it causes the summary area 1002 to be populated by only those content summaries 600 of units of content having sub-units that were created by user accounts that had been designated as friends of the particular user account presently logged into the positional content application 210. Second, selection of the friends-only quick-filter button 1008 unselects the public quick-filter button 1006.

Selection of the tagged quick-filter button 1010 causes the summary area to be populated by only those content summaries 600 of units of content having sub-units that “tag” the particular user account presently logged into the positional content application 210.

The aggregator detail 1000 also includes a back button 1012, the selection of which returns the user interface to the aggregator summary 900, such as the particular embodiment depicted in FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 depicts a create content screen 1100, according to some embodiments. The create content screen 1100 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the create new content button 408 along the bottom edge of the field of view 402. The create content screen 1100 includes a keyboard 1102 and a content editing area 1104. By virtue of typing on the keyboard 1102, corresponding text appears in the content editing area 1104. Other forms of content may also be introduced into the content editing area 1104. For example, the create content screen 1100 also includes a camera button 1106, which, when selected causes the positional content application 210 to present a camera/video interface, by which still and moving video files may be created via a camera on-board the mobile device 102 or 104 and introduced into the content editing area 1104.

FIG. 12 depicts a camera/video interface 1200, in accordance with some embodiments. The camera/video interface 1200 is presented in response to selection of the camera button 1106 in the create content screen 1100. The camera/video interface 1200 includes a display region 1202. The display region 1202 present real-time imagery as it is being captured from the on-board camera 332 (FIG. 3). The user may select the capture button 1204 to capture the image currently presented in the display region 1202. In the event that the slide selector 1206 is set to the “camera” mode, the captured image is stored as an in image file, and is introduced into the content editing area 1104, as shown in FIG. 13. On the other hand, in the event that the slide selector 1206 is set to the “video” mode, a video file is captured, with the start of the video file being triggered by the initial selection of the capture button 1204, and the end of the video file being triggered by the subsequent selection of the capture button 1204. According to some embodiments, the video file is introduced into the content editing area 1104 in a manner like the image content was introduced. The camera/video interface 1200 also includes a “back” button 1208, selection of which causes the user interface 400 to return to the create content screen 1100.

The create content screen 1100 also includes a gallery button 1108. The user may introduce previously captured still and moving video files by selection of the gallery button 1108, which presents a gallery of previously captured pictures and videos for selection and inclusion in the content editing area 1104.

The create content screen 1100 also includes a tag button 1110, which presents a list of selectable user accounts associated with the particular user account that is logged in. Upon selection of one or more of the presented user accounts, the sub-unit of content ultimately created via the create content screen 1100 is “tagged” to the selected user account(s), thereby optionally generating an alert to the “tagged” user account, generating a news feed entry to the tagged user account, altering the color of the corresponding content icon 404 or aggregator icon 406 when viewed via the tagged user account, etc.

The create content screen 1100 also includes a visibility button 1112 that controls the set of users of the positional content platform 106 that can find and view the content. According to some embodiments, the visibility button 1112 functions as a toggle button, and can be in one of two states: “friends only,” in which case the content created in the content editing area 1104 and ultimately included in the thread, is visible only to those users of the positional content platform 106 that have been designated as having a “friend” relationship with the user account presently logged into the positional content application 210; and “public,” in which case the content created in the content editing area 1104 and ultimately included in the thread, is visible to all users of the positional content platform 106.

The create content screen 1100 contains a post content button 1114. Upon selection of the post content button 1114, position data is associated with the content. In the event that the field of view 402 is presenting the current location of the mobile device 102 or 104, then GPS data regarding the location of the mobile device 102 or 104 at the time of selection of the post content button 1114 is obtained and associated with the content. In the event that the user has elected to manually center the field of view 402 about another location, then the content is associated with the positional data of the aforementioned other location. The content, associated locational data and data concerning the populace of users permitted to view the data is sent to the service layer 200 via a service call. In response, the service layer 200 stores the content (and aforementioned associated data) in physical database storage 206, meaning that the unit of content becomes discoverable and viewable by the chosen user population at the chosen location.

Finally, the create content screen 1100 contains a back button 1116. Upon selection of the back button 1116, the user interface returns to presenting the field of view 402, such as the embodiment depicted in FIG. 4.

FIG. 14 depicts a method carried out by the positional content application 210 for creating content, according to some embodiments. As can be seen from FIG. 14, the method commences with operation 1400, in which the positional content application 210 displaying a user interface 400 that presents a field of view 402 representative of a region on earth. In operation 1402, the positional content application 210 presents a user interface by which a user may generate digital content. Additionally, in operation 1404, the positional content application 210 presents an on the user interface 400 a selectable option to render the digital content discoverable only by other users designated by said user (such as friends), or to render the content discoverable by all other users of the positional content platform 106. Next, in operation 1406, the content is created by aggregating the content together with the chosen positional data and data concerning the population of users permitted to discover the content. Finally, in operation 1408, the a service call is sent to the service layer 200. The service call includes the positional data, the digital content and the data concerning the population of users permitted to discover the content. In response, the service layer 200 stores the content (and aforementioned associated data) in physical database storage 206, meaning that the unit of content becomes discoverable and viewable by the chosen user population at the chosen location.

FIG. 15 depicts a filter menu 1500, presented atop the field of view 402. The filter menu 1500 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the filter menu button 410 along the bottom edge of the field of view 402. According to some embodiments, the filter menu includes four selection items: a filter-by-people item 1502; a filter-by-date item 1504; a filter-by-place item 1506; and a filter-by-type item 1508. Selection of each of the aforementioned items 1502-1508 presents various interfaces permitting the user to establish filter criteria. By virtue of application of such criteria, icons 404 and 406 will be presented within the field of view 402 if and only if the units of content referenced by the icons 404 and 406 meet the established filter criteria.

In response to selection of the filter-by-people item 1502, an interface is presented. The interface permits the user to establish various filter criteria. For example, the interface presents options permitting the user to establish the following criteria for presentation within the field of view 402: the creator of unit of content is a friend; creator of any sub-unit of content within a unit of content is a friend; the creator of unit of content is a follower; the creator of any sub-unit of content within a unit of content is a follower; the creator of unit of content is followed; the creator of any sub-unit of content within a unit of content is followed; the unit of content tags the user account that is presently logged into the positional content application 210; any sub-unit of content within the unit of content tags the user account that is presently logged into the positional content application 210; the unit of content tags any user account that is designated as a friend; and, any sub-unit of content of a unit of content tags any user account that is designated as a friend. The preceding list is exemplary, and is not limiting. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied conjunctively. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied disjunctively.

In response to selection of the filter-by-date item 1504, an interface is presented. The interface permits the user to establish various filter criteria. For example, the interface presents options permitting the user to establish the following criteria for presentation within the field of view 402: the unit of content was created or changed within the present day; any sub-unit of content within the unit of content was created or changed within the present day; the unit of content was created or changed within a chosen period of time; and, any sub-unit of content within the unit of content was created or changed within a chosen period of time. The preceding list is exemplary, and is not limiting. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied conjunctively. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied disjunctively.

In response to selection of the filter-by-place item 1506, an interface is presented. The interface permits the user to establish various filter criteria. For example, the interface presents options permitting the user to establish the following criteria for presentation within the field of view 402: the unit of content is associated with a location within a region designated as a place; the unit of content is associated with a location within a region that is designated a particular place or set of places chosen from a list. The preceding list is exemplary, and is not limiting. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied conjunctively. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied disjunctively.

In response to selection of the filter-by-type item 1508, an interface is presented. The interface permits the user to establish various filter criteria. For example, the interface presents options permitting the user to establish the following criteria for presentation within the field of view 402: the unit of content includes text; the unit of content contains text only; the unit of content or any of its sub-units contains text; the unit of content and any of its sub-units contains text only; the unit of content includes an image; the unit of content contains an image only; the unit of content or any of its sub-units contains an image; the unit of content and any of its sub-units contains an image only; the unit of content includes video; the unit of content contains video only; the unit of content or any of its sub-units contains video; the unit of content and any of its sub-units contains video only; the unit of content includes audio; the unit of content contains audio only; the unit of content or any of its sub-units contains audio; and, the unit of content and any of its sub-units contains audio only. The preceding list is exemplary, and is not limiting. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied conjunctively. According to some embodiments, multiple filter criteria are applied disjunctively.

The filter menu 1500 also includes a back button 1510. Selection of the back button 1510 causes the filter menu 1500 to vanish from the user interface, restoring the view to the field of view 402.

FIG. 16 depicts a view menu 1600, presented atop the field of view 402. The view menu 1600 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the view menu button 412 along the bottom edge of the field of view 402. According to some embodiments, the view menu 1600 includes six selection items: a list item 1602; a map item 1604; a satellite item 1606; a 5-D Vision item 1608; and, a game counsel item 1610. Selection of each of the aforementioned items 1602-1610 affects the field of view 402 in some manner.

Selection of the list item 1602 causes the field of view 402 to be replaced by a simple ordered list of all of the units of content within the field of view 402. This view may be convenient in a particularly crowded environment.

Selection of the map item 1604 causes the field of view 402 to display a map of the roads and other features of interest, so that the user can relate the field of view 402 to a specific geographic region.

Selection of the map item 1606 causes the field of view 402 to display a satellite imagery of the geographic region corresponding to the field of view 402, so that the user can observe a top view of the physical environment in the geographic region corresponding to the field of view 402.

Selection of the 5-D item 1608 causes the field of view 402 to be presented in accordance with the 5-D view described with reference to FIG. 20.

Selection of the game counsel item cause the field of view 402 to include units of content that are part of a game played through the positional content platform. The view menu 1600 also includes a back button 1612. Selection of the back button 1612 causes the view menu 1600 to vanish from the user interface 400.

FIG. 17 depicts a search menu 1700, presented atop the field of view 402. The search menu 1700 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the search button 414 along the bottom edge of the field of view 402. According to some embodiments,

A text box 1702 is presented. Within the text box 1702, the user may enter the name of a previously designated “place” or may enter an address. In either event, the positional content application 210 responds by adjusting the field of view 402 so that the position indicator 424, which according to one embodiment remains centered in the field of view 402, is located at the “place” or address entered in the text box 1702. The search menu 1700 also includes a cancel button 1704, the selection of which causes the search menu 1700 to vanish from the user interface 400.

FIG. 18 depicts a mark place interface 1800, presented atop the field of view 402. The mark place interface 1800 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the mark place button 416 along the bottom edge of the field of view 402. According to some embodiments, the mark place interface 1800 includes a text box 1802. By entry of a name within the text box 1802, a region defined by the location of the position indicator 424 and a radius extending outwardly therefrom is associated with the name, and designated as a place. Thus, data defining the region, and the chosen name of the region, are communicated to the service layer 200 for storage in the physical storage layer 206, thereby designating a specified geographic region as a “place.” According to some embodiments, the aforementioned radius is of a length that is determined as a default value. According some embodiments, the aforementioned radius has a selectable length. According to some embodiments, a place is defined as a region bounded by a pair of longitudinal coordinates and a pair of latitudinal coordinated, with the region being centered about the geographic position corresponding to the position indicator 424.

According to some embodiments, the mark place interface 1800 includes a pair of scope buttons 1804. The pair of scope buttons 1804 indicates the chosen scope of population of users that can recognize the designated geographic region as a place. If the pair of scope buttons 1804 is selected to “on,” then all of the users of the platform 106 will recognize the aforementioned region as a “place.” On the other hand, if the pair of scope buttons 1804 is set to “off,” then only those users designated as friends can recognize the designated geographic region as a place. Information pertaining to the selected population scope is communicated in the above-described service call for storage in the physical storage layer 206.

The mark place interface 1800 also includes a cancel button 1806, the selection of which causes the mark place interface 1800 to vanish from the user interface 400.

FIG. 19 depicts a positional selection menu 1900, presented atop the field of view 402. The positional selection menu 1900 is presented in the user interface 400, in response to selection of the positional selection button 422 along the top edge of the field of view 402. According to some embodiments, the positional selection menu 1900 includes a current location item 1902 and a set 1904 of “places” that have been previously designated, such as through use of the interface described with reference to FIG. 18. Selection of the current location item 1902 causes the positional content application 210 to shift the field of view 402, so that it is centered about the current location indicted by the GPS system of the mobile device 102 or 104, meaning that the position indicator 424 is positioned at the current location of the mobile device 102 or 104. The user may also select a previously designated place from the set 1904 of places presented in the menu. Selection of a “place” from the menu causes the positional content application 210 to shift the field of view 402, so that it is centered about the region associated with the place, meaning that the position indicator 424 is positioned at the center of the geographic region associated with the place.

According to some embodiments, the positional selection menu 1900 includes a search button 1906. Selection of the search button presents a text box, permitting the user to enter the name of a previously designated “place.” The positional content application 210 responds in a manner identical to its response if the place was selected from the menu items 1904. According to some embodiments, the user may enter a street address, causing the positional content application to shift the field of view 402, so that it is centered about location associated with the street address, meaning that the position indicator 424 is positioned at the center of the region associated with the street address.

FIG. 20 depicts a field of view 402, as it is presented after selection of the 5-D item 1608 from the view menu 1600 (FIG. 160). The field of view 402 as presented in FIG. 18 includes imagery 2000 presented in real-time from the camera 322 on-board the mobile device 102 or 104. According to some embodiments, the 5-D field of view 402 includes content summaries 600 and aggregator summaries 900 super imposed over the real-time imagery 2000 (this is depicted in FIG. 20). According to other embodiments, the 5-D field of view includes content icons 404 and aggregator icons 406.

According to some embodiments, the positional content application 210 determines its current location and orientation of the phone using the on-board GPS system and gyroscope, for example. For example, the application 210 determines that the mobile device 102 or 104 is located at the intersection of a particular latitude and particular longitude, and is oriented such that the rear surface of the phone is pointed 35° off of magnetic north. The application 210 then constructs a region based upon the detected position and orientation. The constructed region serves as the field of view 402. For example, the application may create a region defined as the geographic space within a particular radius (example: 200 meters) of the current position of the device 102 or 104, and within a certain tolerance (for example, within ±15° of the detected orientation). Carrying on the example, the constructed region is defined as: the set of geographic space within 200 meters of the current location of the mobile device, and between 20° and 50° off of magnetic north. The application sends a service call to the service layer 200 to query the database 202 for content within the constructed field of view. In response to having sent the service call, the positional content application 210 receives a response from the service layer 200. The response includes data that is descriptive of the individual units of content within the constructed field of view 402, including locational data for each such unit, and, optionally, other summary data for each such unit, including data required for icon 404 and 406 color determination and information required for content summary 600 display or aggregator summary 900 display. The application superimposes the icons 404 and 406 or summaries 600 and 900 on the display in a manner similar to that described with reference to FIG. 5. According to some embodiments, the vertical positioning of an icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900 is determined by the geographic distance between the current location of the mobile device and location associated with the unit of content reference by the icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900. For example, icons 404 and 406 or summaries 600 and 900 referencing relatively closer content may appear closer to the bottom edge of the screen, while icons 404 and 406 or summaries 600 and 900 referencing relatively further content may appear closer to the top edge of the screen. According to some embodiments, the horizontal positioning of an icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900 is determined by a polar expression of the location associated with the content reference by a particular icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900. For example, a particular unit of content may be positioned at a distance, d, from the current position of the device 102 or 104, and at an angle, θ, from the detected orientation. If the angle, θ, is close to zero, then the icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900 is presented close to the center of the screen. On the other hand, if the angle, θ, is close to the aforementioned negative or positive tolerance (carrying the previous example forward: θ is close to ±15° from the detected orientation), the icon 404 and 406 or summary 600 and 900 is presented close to either edge of the screen.

FIG. 21 depicts a notifications center 2100, in accordance with some embodiments. According to some embodiments, while the positional content application 210 is executing in the foreground, upon the occurrence of an even that would trigger a notification (see the discussion with respect to FIG. 1 pertaining to notifications), a distinctive audio file, such as beeps, or tones, or a music clip, etc., is played, alerting the user to the presence of a notification. According to some embodiments, while the positional content application 210 is executing in the foreground, upon the occurrence of an even that would trigger a notification, the application 210 causes the mobile device 102 or 104 to vibrate. According to some embodiments, in addition to the aforementioned audio and vibrational indications of a notification, the notifications icon 420 is badged in response to the occurrence of an event that triggers a notification. For example, as can be seen in FIG. 4, the notifications icon 420 therein is superimposed with a badge bearing the number “11.” According to some embodiments the badge bears a number indicating the number of unviewed notifications that have occurred.

According to some embodiments, the notifications icon 420 is selectable. In response to selection of the notifications icon, the notifications center 2100 is presented in the user interface 400. As can be seen from FIG. 21, the notifications center 2100 includes individual notification details 2102 and 2104. Each notification detail 2102 or 2104 contains information concerning the nature of the event that triggered the notification. For example, a notification detail 2102 or 2104 may state the date, time, location and identity, etc. of a creator of a unit of content, or a notification detail 2102 or 2104 may include information stating the date and time that a particular user account was observed entering or exiting a designated place.

According to some embodiments, in the event that the application is not executing in the foreground, the occurrence of a notification is indicated by the presentation of a banner containing a message indicating that the notification has occurred. Optionally, the occurrence may also be indicated by the playing of an audio file, or by a vibration. The user may then bring the positional content application 210 to the foreground and view the notification detail 2102 or 2104 in the notification center 2100, as described above.

According to some embodiments, in the event that the application 210 is not executing in the foreground, because the mobile device is in a “sleep” state, the occurrence of a notification is indicated by the presentation of a message on the lock screen of the device 102 or 104. Optionally, the occurrence may also be indicated by the playing of an audio file, or by a vibration. The user may then bring the positional content application 210 to the foreground and view the notification detail 2102 or 2104 in the notification center 2100, as described above. Optionally, the message on the lock screen may be configured so that in response to the user “swiping” his finger across the message, the user is presented with the notification center in order to view the corresponding notification detail 2102 or 2104.

The notifications center 2100 also includes a clear button 2106. Selection of the clear buttons causes the notification details 2102 and 2104 contained within the notification center 2100 to be deleted, and therefore removes the badging from the notifications icon 420.

The notifications center 2100 also includes a back button 2108. Selection of the back button 210 causes the notifications center 2100 to vanish from the user interface 400.

FIG. 22 depicts a newsfeed screen 2200, in accordance with some embodiments. The newsfeed screen 2200 is presented in response to selection of a newsfeed menu option, which is presented on a menu that, in turn, is presented from a menu that is presented in response to selection of the menu button 418 (FIG. 4). As can be seen from FIG. 22, the newsfeed screen 2200 includes a plurality of newsfeed details 2202, 2204 and 2206. Each newsfeed detail 2202, 2204 and 2206 contains information concerning the nature of the platform 106 event giving rise to entry in the newsfeed 2200. For example, a newsfeed detail 2202, 2204 and 2206 may state the date, time, location and identity, etc. of a creator of a unit of content, a newsfeed detail 2202, 2204 and 2206 may include information stating the date and time that a particular user account was observed entering or exiting a designated place, a newsfeed detail 2202, 2204 and 2206 may include the date and time that a particular user, such as a user that was previously designated as a friend/follower or otherwise designated as bearing an association with the user account that is presently logged into the positional content application 210 on another platform, joined the platform 106.

The various embodiments described above are provided by way of illustration only and should not be construed to limit the invention. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize various modifications and changes that may be made to the present invention without following the exemplary embodiments and applications illustrated and described herein, and without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention, which is set forth in the various claims. 

1. A computerized method for execution by a mobile communication and processing device comprising: determining a location of a mobile communication and processing device; constructing field of view data representative of a region on earth based on the determined location of said mobile communication and processing device; displaying a user interface that presents the field of view representative of a region on earth; sending a first service call to a service layer, wherein said service call includes the field of view data; receiving, in response to said first service call, attribute data descriptive of first digital content that is associated with a locale within said region and a first message from a user, and attribute data descriptive of second digital content that is associated with said locale within said region and a discount coupon; positioning first and second icons representing said first message and said discount coupon, respectively, within said field of view of said user interface as a function of said locale; displaying the first message in response to a user selection of the first icon; and. displaying the discount coupon in response to a user selection of the second icon.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said field of view data comprises latitude and longitude data.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein said field of view data further comprises a radius. 4-11. (canceled)
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein said digital content comprises a plurality of individual units of user-generated data.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein each of said units of user-generated data is associated with creation data that, for a given unit of user-generated data, indicates an identity of a creator of said given unit of user-generated data.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein each of said units of user-generated data is associated with timestamp data that, for a given unit of user-generated data, indicates a time of creation said given unit of user-generated data.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein said plurality of individual units of user-generated data are associated with each other as a discussion thread.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein said act of positioning said icon within said field of view comprises superimposing said icon on a map, wherein said icon is superimposed over an area on said map corresponding to said locale.
 17. The method of claim 1, wherein said act of positioning said icon within said field of view comprises superimposing said icon on a satellite image, wherein said icon is superimposed over an area on said satellite image corresponding to said locale.
 18. The method of claim 1 wherein said field of view comprises a real time image representative of the region on earth generated by a camera integrated into said mobile communication and processing device.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein said mobile communication and processing device is positioned at a location and in an orientation, and wherein said act of positioning said icon within said field of view comprises: determining said location of said mobile communication and processing device; determining said orientation of said mobile communication and processing device; and super imposing said first and second icons on said real time image, wherein the first and second icons are positioned at respective locations on the real time image as a function of said location, said orientation and said locale associated with said digital content.
 20. The method of claim 1, wherein said service layer executes on a processing platform that is separate from said mobile communication and processing device.
 21. A mobile communication and processing device comprising: a user interface; a processor; a camera in data communication with said processor; and a memory unit in communication with said processor, said memory unit storing a set of instructions that, when executed by said processor cause said processor and memory unit to cooperate to: determine a location of said mobile communication and processing device; determine an orientation of said mobile communication and processing device; construct field of view data including identification of a region on earth based on the determined location and orientation of said mobile communication and processing device; display a real-time image obtained by the camera on the user interface; send a first service call to a service layer, wherein said service call includes the field of view data; receive, in response to said first service call, attribute data descriptive of digital content that is associated with a locale within said region; super impose an icon representing the digital content on the real-time image displayed on said user interface, wherein the icon is positioned at a location on the user interface as a function of said location, said orientation, and said locale; and display the digital content in response to a user selection of the icon. 22-24. (canceled)
 25. The mobile communication and processing device of claim 21, wherein said attribute data comprises identity data indicating an identity of a creator of said digital content. 26-36. (canceled)
 37. The mobile communication and processing device of claim 21, wherein a vertical location of the icon on the user interface is determined by a geographic distance between the determined location of the mobile communication and processing device and a location associated with the digital content represented by the icon.
 38. The mobile communication and processing device of claim 37, wherein a horizontal positioning of the icon on the user interface is determined by a polar expression of the location associated with the digital content represented by the icon. 